Eberechi Eze opens up on his journey to becoming an Arsenal and England star with former team-mate Adebayo Akinfenwa on the latest episode of GOAL’s Beast Mode On podcast.
GOAL’s Beast Mode On Podcast, hosted by Adebayo Akinfenwa, welcomes guest Eberechi Eze as he discusses a whole host of topics including making an emotional return to his boyhood club Arsenal in the summer.
After scoring the winner to help Crystal Palace win their first piece of silverware in last season’s FA Cup final, Eze joined the Gunners in a move which saw him head back to the club who released him from their academy 14 years ago, when he was just 13.
Keen to taste Champions League football by switching to Arsenal, the 27-year-old has revealed a hilarious anecdote from his debut in the competition, which you can read more about below. You can also watch the full episode of the Beast Mode On Podcast via YouTube and Spotify.
Getty Images Sport'Oh my days, it's playing!'
Speaking exclusively to GOAL's Beast Mode On Podcast, Arsenal forward Eze has revealed he was so in the zone ahead of his tournament debut against Athletic Club that he was unable to take in the Champions League’s iconic pre-match anthem.
Sitting down for a chat with host Akinfenwa – whom Eze played alongside during a loan spell with Wycombe Wanderers between 2017 and 2018 – the England international said: "First of all, I heard the music… I wasn't focused. So disappointed in myself. Halfway through the song, I said, ‘oh my days, it’s playing!’ So I was too locked in. I was too in the moment. Which is a good thing. But the first time around I didn’t really deep it."
AdvertisementGetty Images Sport'It's crazy because these are things that you dream of'
However, Eze was able to tune into the music when he was named on the bench for Arsenal's second fixture against Olympiacos on 1 October, though not for too long.
He continued: “Second game, I didn't start so I was able to actually take in the music, and I said, ‘Okay, this is it’. But I feel like now, it's crazy because these are things that you dream of, and then you get to a point where it's like ‘OK, but what does that mean?’ I'm [going] to work, to do business.
“I'm not a fan of the happy to be here thing. I'm happy if you think that about me. And you have that perception of me. Good. Because then you think I'm sleeping. But for me, the idea of, like, celebrating things excessively, I'm not the biggest fan of it.
“So for me, it's been fun to get to work in the Champions League, to get to do my stuff and to play at the highest level, because that's what it's about.”
Getty Images Sport'Sometimes it's a lot more chess being played'
Relishing the opportunity to compete against the best players in the world via the Champions League, the former Queens Park Rangers attacker has lifted the lid on the differences between Europe's elite club competition and the Premier League.
He said of the Champions League: “It's different to the Prem in the sense that you're facing teams with a different way of thinking about football, a different way of approaching a game.
“Guys are a bit more technical and a bit more tactical. Not as much fighting and running around. Sometimes it’s a lot more chess being played. But it’s fun, it’s enjoyable, it’s still football, you’ve still got to find a way to beat your opponent.”
Watch the full episode